


H2O Just Add Water

by RoxasItsuka



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Atlantean Haru, Atlantean Makoto, Atlantean Nagisa, Atlantis, Bigotry & Prejudice, Boys In Love, F/F, F/M, Falling In Love, Friendship, Girls in Love, M/M, Magic, Makoto is afraid of the ocean, Merman Rei, Miho is married, Rei becomes a badass, Rei is afraid of the ocean, Rei is bullied, Sirens, Slow Build, sea gods, undines
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-04-15
Packaged: 2021-02-27 03:18:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,362
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22060129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoxasItsuka/pseuds/RoxasItsuka
Summary: Rei Ryugazaki is a social outcast living in Iwatobi with his cousin Yukio. Deep beneath the sea lies Atlantis, an ancient civilization wages war against their enemy. On the night of a full moon, the power of the Gods is enacted and Rei's life is changed forever. With new powers and appearance when he touches water, Rei must learn to adapt and survive while trying to keep his secret. Loosely based off the TV Series.
Relationships: Amakata Miho/Original Male Character(s), Hazuki Nagisa/Ryuugazaki Rei, Kunikida Ayumu/Matsuoka Gou, Matsuoka Rin/Nanase Haruka, Mikhail Makarovich/Azuma Ryuuji, Shigino Hayato/Kuramoto Misaki, Tachibana Makoto/Yamazaki Sousuke, Tachibana Ran/Original Male Character(s), Tachibana Ren/Hatsune Miku, Terashima Kotarou/Misae
Comments: 9
Kudos: 12





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own Free: Iwatobi Swim Club

Water.

One of the four elements.

A giver and taker of life.

It is something that no living creature can survive without, whether they live in it or above it.

It is something that covers the two thirds of the earth, known as the sea, divided up into areas called oceans.

Water is many things to many people, both good and bad.

To those who dwell on land, water is a way to survive. Beings on land use it to stay hydrated, bathe, travel, for agriculture, leisure, catching food, and various other things.

To those who dwell in the water, it is everything. It determines how they live and survive.

On the surface, humans see the sea as a large blanket of water covering the earth where fish live. However, there is so much more than that. Deep beneath the sea lie beings of myth and legend that remain hidden from the surface.

A civilisation thought to be long lost, otherwise known as Atlantis, flourishes. It's people far superior to that of humankind. They are stronger, faster, resilient and more powerful than humanity, for they possess the gift of magic bestowed upon them by the sea gods. Their society is divided up into different classes based on power and abilities. These classes are sea serpent, undine, siren and nymph.

Sea Serpents are the warrior class. These are individuals who are trained in hand to hand as well as armed combat from the day they can walk. They know basic Atlantean magic and possess the ability to shapeshift into an aquatic animal that matches their spirit to increase their fighting prowess. Physically speaking, they are the strongest type of Atlanteans.

Undines are practitioners and masters of magic. They are skilled in all forms of magic but still retain some melee combat ability. It is their magic that keeps Atlantis as well as others like them hidden from those on the surface. It is also their magic that makes them feared among the oceans.

Sirens are singers and musicians of Atlantis. The know basic magic but are not skilled fighters. Their voices are melodic and enchanting with the ability increase the power of individuals (be it strength, speed, defence, or magic), as well as control certain individuals. They are especially effective when controlling a human (surface-dweller).

Nymphs are the lower class of Atlantis. They can only use water as an ability and thus act as farmers to keep the sea pure and uncontaminated. Despite being an important job acknowledged by the king himself, Nymphs are often looked down on and mistreated due to being weak.

Ruling over these classes was the Royal Family, the Matsuoka's. The head of the Royal Family was King Toraichi, a wise, strict, fierce (when in battle and dealing with political matters) yet benevolent ruler. His wife Miyako had passed away two years ago. Due to this he was left to raise his two children, his son Rin, his first born and heir to his throne, and his daughter Gou, all by himself. The Matsuoka's, due to being descended from the first Atlanteans had powers related to all classes though they mostly chose to study under one.

Atlanteans aside, other species lived in the sea. These were enemy species to Atlantis. They included Kraken, Piranha, and Cecaelia. They served under the control of the Sea Titan Leviathon, who's power rivalled that of the Sea Gods. He constantly waged war with Atlantis in an effort to control the seas and later destroy the surface.

That aside, one might be wondering, what about Merpeople. Do they exist? They did exist at one point. They were a race that were part fish and human. They were one of the first Atlantean species and had access to powerful magic because they retained their connection to land. They were wiped out millennia ago.

When they were destroyed, there was no trace of them left behind. Only legends and fairy tales. That is until this night!


	2. Night of the Full Moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A party gone wrong, Rei's life is forever changed by individuals he never knew existed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own Free: Iwatobi Swim Club

Rei struggled against the forces that held him where he was. They wouldn't let him to move from where he was. He couldn't breathe. He suffocated as he held his breath against the water.

Drowning.

That was what was happening to him. There was no other way to describe it. The sensation reminded him so much of _'that time'_. It was unbearable, but most all, it was humiliating, that he had to remember it from the horrible position he was in now. As he continued to hold his breath, his body started to become numb and he started to lose consciousness. Once his body stopped moving, his captors seemed to realize that their joke had gone too far and brought him back up.

Rei gasped for air as his head came out of the water. The second he did, there were laughs from the boys in the room with him. Currently he was in the bathroom at Iwatobi Middle school where four boys (his primary tormentors) were just giving him a swirly. The reason, purely because they wanted to and because he was easy to pick on. At school, Rei wasn't a member of any clubs, he was mostly quiet and kept to himself. He didn't really have any friends, barring Ayumu, and most of the time people ignored him.

His four tormentors were Kitamura Mishima, Shinji Kiwatari, Daigo Moyotasu, and Kyo Hanamiya. The first and fourth were fifteen while the second and third were fourteen. Like Rei, they were all third years in Middle School.

Kitamura was handsome in appearance possessing rose-coloured eyes and long rose-coloured hair that stretched down to his waist. Kitamura was the rich boy of Iwatobi, with his father being the head of a company that designed Sports gear for people. As such, he possessed a well-built body and was quite athletic being the captain of the soccer club. In addition, he was a member of the student council.

Shinji was the tallest of the boys. He possessed a bulky figure, short navy-coloured hair and black coloured eyes. He was the muscle of the group and a member of the Judo club.

Daigo was the same height as Kitamura and was equally handsome. He owned long brown hair tied up in a ponytail, red eyes, and tanned skin. Like the other two, he possessed a well-built body, which was fitting considering he was the captain of the Kendo club.

Kyo was the smallest of the group, and the thinnest. He had bright wavy, messy green hair, and yellow eyes. In addition, he wore rectangular shaped glasses. He was brains of the group. He was a member of the science and mathematics clubs.

"Seriously Ryugazaki, it's just water it won't bite," Kitamura informed him in a condescending voice.

"Geez, how much more pathetic can you get?" Shinji jeered.

"Isn't your uncle supposed to be an Olympic swimmer?" Daigo interrogated. "He must be ashamed to have you for a nephew. Someone who is afraid of water and can't even swim must be an embarrassment to his name."

Rei wanted so badly to argue and to tell them to shut up but he lacked any resolve to do so. As much as it pained him to admit, they were right. He was terrified of water. Though they were wrong to say his uncle Takeshi was ashamed of him. These idiots didn't know why they hated water. Maybe if they did they wouldn't bother him as much though he seriously doubted it. They had made his life hell for the past three years and showed no sign of stopping anytime soon.

"Guys, as much as I would love to continue this class will be starting shortly and I don't want to be late," Kyo informed them in a smug voice. "Besides, I think we've made our point."

The others glanced at each other briefly before agreeing.

"True, let's go boys," Kitamura announced as they started towards the door. Kitamura shot Rei (who was sitting on the ground breathing heavily) a cruel look, and smirked. "See you around Ryugazaki-san."

When they were gone, Rei curled up into a ball and began to silently cry. He wished his life wasn't like this. He wished so badly. Unfortunately, it was not meant to be.

Collecting himself, he got up and washed his hands and face. Then he quickly proceeded back to the classroom to grab his things. He didn't normally cut class but right now he just couldn't stay here, not in his current condition. Lunch was almost over and with any luck, few of his classmates would still in the room.

While walking to he came across his only friend at school, Ayumu Kunikada, a quiet yet intelligent girl who preferred to remain in the background while others basked in the spotlight.

"Rei-kun," she murmured softly. "What happened to you? Why are you wet?"

Rei looked away, reluctant to answer. However, his silence only answered Ayumu's question.

"Was it them?" Ayumu asked, her voice remaining calm.

Again, Rei refused to answer, confirming her suspicions.

"I don't understand why you don't report them," Ayumu admitted. "You could put an end to it all by just telling the teachers."

"As if they'd believe me. Those four have contributed so much to this school's reputation, not to mention Mishima-kun's father holds a lot of influence," Rei sighed. "I'm fine though. It's nothing."

Ayumu's eyes narrowed.

"Is that why you're planning on leaving right now," she asked her tone never changing. Rei wasn't surprised in the least. Ayumu had always been good at reading him. "If you want, I can tell Sensei you were feeling sick and had to go home."

"Would you?" Rei asked with a bit of relief. Ayumu nodded. "Thank you, Ayumu-chan. I'll repay you for this somehow."

Ayumu shrugged. "Not necessary. We're friends after all. By the way, are still going to the party tonight?" Rei nodded in confirmation. "You it's on Mako Island right? And to get there you'll have to-"

"I'll be fine Ayumu-chan." Rei interrupted. "Besides, everyone is going tonight. It would be wrong if I didn't make an appearance, though I doubt anyone would notice me."

"I would," Ayumu countered firmly.

There was silence between the two. Ayumu had been his friend since childhood, and the only one aside from Yukio and his uncle who understood him. How he ever ended up with someone like her he didn't know but he was grateful to whatever Kami that blessed him with her.

"Thank you, Ayumu-chan. Well, I'd better get going before lunch ends," Rei stated. "See you tonight."

Ayumu simply nodded and walked off while Rei went to collect his things. Then he returned home to wash himself and his clothes to get ready for tonight. The third and final semester had started two weeks ago and everyone wanted to celebrate the fact that they were almost finished at Iwatobi. So, tonight there was going to be a party on Mako Island, and everyone from third year, including him, was invited.

Mako was an Island not too far off the coast. It was quite big as well, and though he had not been there personally, he heard it was like a small jungle with several species of plant and animal life. It was also the perfect area for fishing, especially if you were looking for mackerel.

Also, for some strange reason, the third years chose to hold the party tonight because it was a full moon. Rei guessed it was to make the night seem special but didn't question it.

Arriving home, Rei immediately threw his clothes in the wash and jumped in the shower. He was planning on staying here for a while.

**Elsewhere beneath the Sea**

If one were to look out at sea and see how calm it is they would assume everything is fine and the sea looks beautiful. Unfortunately, they are only judging from the surface. They cannot see the unrest of all that dwells there. And they remain blissfully unaware of the war that rages beneath the ocean, and battle about to be fought between Atlantis and Leviathans forces.

Atlantis, a gigantic, marvellous, luminous, city with high building structures in rectangular and circular shapes. In the West, lie the Undines where they teach practice magic to other undines. In the East, lie the Sirens as they sing in all their musical glory. In the North, the Sea Serpents as they trained day-to-day to defend Atlantis from invaders like they would be doing tonight. And finally, in the South, on the outskirts of the city lived the Nymph's who lived in one storey houses which were enough for each family.

At the centre of the city, lay the Royal Palace, while not towering over the other buildings, it was still quite tall and took up the most space as it spread out. This was where a meeting was currently taking place in the throne room.

At the top of the room sat King Toraichi Matsuoka, wearing a turquoise set of armour that covered his entire body, save the soles of his feet. In his right hand he held a blue trident with a jewel at the centre of the three knives that glowed the same colour, symbolizing it's power. He had an intimidating appearance, though that was to be expected.

To his right, was his son and heir Rin, wearing a similar pair of armour, only it was crimson red, holding a red trident. His expression was one of pure anger.

To his left, was his daughter Gou. A maiden whose beauty was as famed as her mother's. She wore a white t-shirt that covered her top section but left her bellybutton exposed and there were no sleeves. In addition, she wore white trousers that went down to her ankles. Her expression was one of concern.

In attendance were Sea Serpents, whose bodies were covered entirely by gold armour, save the soles of their feet. Undines, wearing cloaks around their necks. All males (Undine and Siren) went bare chested (though few wore t-shirts) and wore trousers who sizes varying from the beginning of their legs to their ankles. Females wore a loose cloth (also t-shirts and vests) to cover themselves while they wore trouser similar to men. All Atlanteans went barefoot.

"I am confident you all know the situation at hand, however, for those of you who don't I will explain it again," the King addressed his subjects. "Our scouts have sent word that Leviathan's army is but a few hours away from our beloved city." There were a few murmurs and gasps. "As such, I have gathered you all here to prepare for the upcoming battle we face. When they come, we will defend our city and our people at all costs. However, Leviathan's army is large, and because of this we will require external help."

A few Atlantean eyes widened at what he was saying. When he said external help, he didn't mean another tribe. He meant something far superior.

"As tonight is a full moon, several of the strongest and gifted Undines and Sirens shall enter the Chamber of the Sacred Pool and call upon the Gods themselves for their aid," Toraichi announced.

This time the murmurs were louder and more concerned. The Sacred Pool was the most holy place in Atlantis. Only the Royal Family, and members of the classes of the highest authority could enter. It was a gift from the Gods and had existed since Atlantis was formed, if not before.

"This is pretty serious isn't it Haru?" a worried voice told his friend.

"How annoying? It looks like we'll have our hands full tonight Makoto, alongside Nagisa that is," Haru replied in a bored tone.

Makoto wanted to tell his friend to not say such things but decided against it. Haru had always been a free spirit. Doing and saying things the way he wanted.

Haru and Makoto were both Undines with Makoto's cloak and trousers (that went to his ankles) being green while Haru's (whose only went to his knees) were blue. Their friend Nagisa was a Siren, and a rather gifted one.

The room became silent again as the King spoke.

"I know this shocking to you all, but it must be done. In order to protect our home and people we must call upon our Deities for their help. Before we do that however, evacuation of civilians, notably children and those who cannot fight. And before anyone even thinks of arguing, that includes the Nymph's," there was a collective amount scowls from the Sirens and Undines. They did not want to help the ones they looked down on. Toraichi held his ground. "Is there a problem?" His tone had turned soft and dangerous, and almost instantly they shut up. "Ah, good. For a moment there I thought there was a problem."

Makoto had to admire the authority the King exhibited. How he took control of a situation and swayed it in his favour. Haru couldn't have cared less about what Rins father did, he just wanted this meeting to end. Though he didn't underestimate the seriousness of it.

"When Leviathan's forces arrive, we will strike back with all our might and with everything at our disposal. It will be Sea Serpents out front with Undines and Sirens backing them. You are to kill them without mercy and with extreme prejudice," the King stood up and raised his trident. "MARK MY WORDS! ATLANTIS SHALL NOT FALL TO THESE MONSTERS!"

The room erupted into shouts with many raising their hands. Haru, Makoto, and Nagisa were an exception to this. Haru glanced at Rin who glanced back. The look in his eyes told him that this was going to be a long battle, and a fierce.

**Shortly afterwards**

After the meeting finished, evacuations immediately took place. Haru and Makoto met up with Nagisa, whose trousers were yellow.

"That was intense," Nagisa admitted.

"Understatement of the year," Makoto sighed. "I'd better make sure Ren and Ran are evacuated safely."

Ever since the death of his parents years ago, he had become the sole guardian of the twins. If anything happened to them, he didn't even want to think about it.

"I can make sure they're evacuated if you'd like," came a heavy voice. "They're at your quarters, right?"

They turned and saw that the voice belonged to Rin's best friend and second-in-command Sousuke Yamazaki. His face serious and intimidating but his attitude otherwise. He was accompanied by Rin and Gou.

"Thank you, Yamazaki but I'm their brother, I should be the one to do it," Makoto responded.

"You may want to rethink that," Rin informed him. "You three are about to be very busy."

The trio shared looks of confusion. What was Rin talking about? At that point Gou stepped forward.

"What he means is that you three, due to your abilities, shall be in the Chamber of the Sacred Pool alongside me tonight," she explained.

There was silence.

Makoto gave Gou a shocked look. Nagisa had his mouth dropped open. Haru, despite trying not to show any emotion, eyes widened in surprise.

Gou wasn't the least bit surprised at their reactions. Anyone would feel that way when asked to enter the room. She certainly did when her father declared she would be entering tonight to aid the others in battle.

_Aid._

That's all she ever seemed to be for that man. Whenever there was some great battle involving their city or their troops she was never involved. She was always kept here at her father's orders in case something went wrong. The same couldn't be said for Rin. He was always out with the others fighting to protect Atlantis, fighting for Atlantis while she was kept to the side as a spare. It was so unfair, especially when her father never gave her a say.

"How did that happen?" Haru asked baffled.

"Yeah Gou. I'm surprised, we're not exactly the most popular Atlanteans," Makoto added. "Did Daija or Umi agree with this?"

Daija Kengen, one of the head undines, and Umi Hebiza, the head Siren. Both of them had a mutual dislike for the trio, especially Makoto considering his lineage. They couldn't imagine either of them wanting them of all people in the Chamber of the Sacred Pool.

"Actually, Umi was fine with it," Gou explained. "She's willing to put aside her pride and beliefs to protect Atlantis. Daija was more argumentative. He said you would all likely screw up and leave us in an even worse state than before. Sasabe silenced him though, alongside Rin here."

Rin said nothing but didn't deny it either. They weren't surprised Goro had intervened either. Goro Sasabe was a Sea Serpent who was highly against the treatment Nymph's received from the other classes. He was also a skilled combatant and occasionally trained the trio in hand-to-hand combat.

"Anyway, it's going forward so you need to get yourselves ready. It's going to be a long and strenuous night," Rin informed them, much to Haru's chagrin.

The others looked uncomfortable though it was more nervousness than anything. Makoto hated fighting, and usually preferred to avoid it. However, this time was impossible. He wouldn't be fighting anyone directly, but still, he would be involved. The others were just the same. Nagisa was usually cheerful and upbeat but when it came to matters like this he would quieten down. Haru's face remained stoic, but it was obvious he didn't like it.

"Well Yamazaki, it seems I shall accept your offer," Makoto announced. "Please escort my siblings to the shelter."

Sousuke nodded and turned to leave.

"Haru," Rin called out moving closer. Their faces were just inches apart. "Try to come out unharmed. It'd be a major pain to me."

Haru frowned looking unimpressed. "I'm not reckless. I'm careful about what I do. Unlike a certain idiot I know. If anything, I should be saying those words to you, Rin."

Rin stared into Harus deep blue eyes, who stared straight back, neither blinking.

Eventually Rin smirked and turned to leave. "Good luck tonight! You're going to need it!"

"You took the words right out of my mouth!" Haru deadpanned.

**Mako Island (hours later)**

Students were cheering and chatting amongst themselves while others were dancing to the band (a local group) playing. Everyone was in a large open space inside the forest not too far from the coast. There were tables with food and drink set up, and at the centre of the space, a large bonfire burned brightly. There were shouts of almost completing the year and moving onto the next stage of school. Overall, everyone seemed happy.

Rei had switched to more casual clothes for the occasion. He wore a purple hoodie with a white t-shirt underneath. In addition he wore navy blue jeans and blue and white sneakers.

Rei wasn't particularly enjoying himself, but he wasn't hating it either. He hadn't been bullied by anyone, and the others were fine with his presence. The boat journey over here hadn't been bad either, though he remained crouched down the entire time and thought constantly about different maths problems to distract himself from passing out. It wasn't exactly sea sickness, at least not the usual type, more of a personal fear. He hated water, and the sea, and for good reason.

"Everything alright?" Ayumu asked snapping him back to reality.

"Fine," Rei lied. "It's a really good party. Everyone seems to be having fun."

"Everyone except you," Ayumu pointed out.

Rei silently cursed. She had seen right through him.

"I'm fine, honestly. It's a nice party," Rei lied again before changing the subject. "Are you enjoying yourself Ayumu-chan?"

Ayumu shrugged. "It's alright I guess. The music and refreshments are fine. Sadly there's no one my type here."

Rei winced slightly at that. He knew Ayumu had a thing for guys that had a bit of fat on them. It was an unusual choice for a girl at her age (most would prefer guys with a bit of muscle), but he never questioned it, something she was grateful for.

"Ayumu-chan," one girl called out. "Come and join us!"

Ayumu briefly considered it. "I don't have to."

Rei thought otherwise. "Go on. Have some fun!"

Ayumu cast an uncertain glance at Rei. However, she eventually relented and moved towards the group. Rei was somewhat relieved since he didn't want to be a burden to her.

"Well, I thought she'd never leave," a familiar cruel voice murmured softly, much to Rei's horror. "Now we can chat just the two of us."

Rei turned and saw Kitamura standing against a tree inspecting his nails. He looked up at Rei and smirked. Rei panicked and started looking around for any sign of the others. Kitamura was rarely without his gang.

"They're here alright. They're just waiting for me," Kitamura informed him.

"What do you want Mishima-san?" Rei asked quickly.

"I believe I said it already, I want to talk," he replied sounding irritated. "Don't make me repeat myself."

Rei was confused. What could he possibly want to talk about?

"Why are you here Ryugazaki?" Kitamura demanded.

Rei blinked confused. "It's a party for everyone from third year. It would be weird not to"

"It would be weird for someone important not to show up," Kitamura interrupted, superiority clearly evident in his voice. "You fall nowhere near that category. So I'll ask again, why are you here?"

Rei stared at the ground. "I just wanted to come. Ayumu-chan was coming so I thought why not." Kitamura stared at him not quiet accepting the answer. "Why do you even care? What I choose to do and why I do it is my business."

Kitamura blinked, surprised at Rei's attitude. How dare he speak to him that way!

"I care because it made me think you've been lying all these about not liking water," he replied. "And I don't like it when people lie to me. Especially you."

Rei gulped slightly, seeing where this was leading.

"I've never lied," he responded, his voice slightly faltering. "I came here by boat but I kept down the entire time. I didn't like it once."

Kitamura eyed him, not quite believing him. Then, without warning, he grabbed Rei by the wrist and started dragging him in the direction everyone entered.

"W-What are you doing?" Rei cried. "Let me go!"

"No," Kitamura stated firmly. "I'm going to take you on a certain boat of mine with the others far out to where the water's deep. We'll see if you're telling the truth or not. Hey, we might even test out your swimming skills while we're there." Rei started to panic much to Kitamura's annoyance. "Don't worry. If it looks like you're drowning one of us will pull you up. I'm not that cruel."

Rei struggled but Kitamura was strong. That's when he put his foot firmly in the ground and halted.

"No!" Rei said in a hard voice.

"No!" Kitamura repeated not sure if he heard him correctly.

Rei glared at him defiantly. "No! I'm going with you on your damned boat and that's final!"

His tormentor simply laughed. "My, my, where has this attitude come from? I'll have to correct that. Let me make something clear. People like you are just steppingstones for people like me. You're not supposed to fight back, you're supposed to bow down and accept what you deserve. All you've ever been is coward, and that's all you've ever be."

Rei could feel his anger rising. He was sick of this, sick of being treated this way. He had never done anything to Kitamura to warrant this sort of treatment.

"I bet your family from whatever shithole they're buried in would be ashamed of" he started.

Rei snapped. It was one thing to insult him, but to talk about his parents and older brother. That enraged him to extremes.

Without warning, he pulled his free hand back and using all his strength, he punched Kitamura hard in the jaw who crumbled to the ground.

Kitamura was stunned beyond all recognition. Rei had punched him! That didn't make any sense. He never fought back. He wasn't supposed to. Looking up at him he could see an expression of pure rage plastered across his face. That was something he wasn't used to and he didn't like it.

"Hey what's going on?" Kyo called out not too far from the scene.

Rei froze. If he was here then the others weren't too far away. Kitamura seemed to have the same idea. He started to call out to his friends but Rei took off running as fast towards the forest away from the party.

Kitamura called his friends who immediately came over.

"After him!" he ordered. "That bastard punched me, and now it's my turn."

There was laughter from Shinji and Kyo who found it amusing that Rei had actually hurt him. Daigo was more surprised since Rei was never violent. Kitamura wasn't laughing. His jaw hurt a lot. Who knew Rei was that strong?

Rei was running through the forest not knowing where he was going like his life depended on it, and it kind of did in this situation. He acted impulsively he knew that. it was rare for him to resort to violence but this time he couldn't help it. When people talked about his family like that, it triggered him.

Rei continued running at a quick pace. Regardless of what people thought, he was an exceptionally fast runner. Yukio even said once he should join the track team.

Rei eventually came to the top of a waterfall. He was surprised that one existed on Mako, thought it wasn't usually explored. Rei had heard there were sharks in the area, though he wasn't sure what kind. People just generally tended to stay away from it.

He could here voices and shouts from behind him. They weren't very far but they weren't very close either. He needed to hurry. He headed to the top of the waterfall to try and cross it.

' _If I cross it here I can,'_ Rei thought.

He didn't get a chance to finish that thought as landed in an unusual way that caused him to slip. Rei let out a scream and the next thing he knew he was falling. Not off the waterfall, more like through it.

When he finished, he was in a cave surrounded by sand. He sat up groaning and rubbing that back of his head.

' _What the? Where am I?'_ he thought incredulously.

The sound of voices from above drew his attention away and he immediately started panicking again. He could here them shouting about how he went this way. However, they didn't seem to be aware he had fallen down here, much to his relief.

When they were gone Rei considered climbing back up only to remind himself that it was safer down here than it was up there. Looking around he the cave had a pathway leading somewhere. Curiosity got the better of him as he got up and started following it.

**Atlantis (same time)**

Loud explosions could be heard from outside Atlantis as the battle raged on. Sea Serpents were engaging Kraken and Piranha in melee combat while Undines were facing off against Cecaelia. Sirens provided support to both groups. More were riding out on seahorses to fight against their enemies. There were ships present as well, though not the kind humans would have, more like submarine battleships that carried members and fired off beams of energy.

A piranha tried to rip Sousuke's flesh out only to be impaled through the throat by Rin's triton.

"Don't let your guard down!" Rin yelled.

Sousuke stabbed a Kraken through the head with his sword that came up behind Rin.

"Same to you!" he snapped back.

The enemies they were facing were formidable. Kraken were monstrous beings with a squid like appearance and were fierce warriors. Piranha were fish headed fighters with incredibly sharp teeth that tore out the flesh of their enemies. Cecaelia were beings part octopus that were skilled practitioners of magic.

Rin looked over to where his father was. King Toraichi had summoned a water cyclone that captured several opponents at once. His triton glowed and he threw it at them, impaling them all at the same time. The triton then quickly returned to him.

' _I will not allow these monsters to harm my home,'_ he decided.

Rin was more frustrated.

"Dammit," he swore. He looked back at the palace. "Haru, Gou, hurry."

**Chamber of the Sacred Pool**

Undines and Sirens gathered in the chamber ready to help their kin. They stood apart from one other in their respective groups. Undines on one side, Sirens on the other, so it would be easier to focus their respective abilities. Still, there combined objective was clear.

Gou was there with some of the head undines and sirens (others were out assisting on the battlefield). They appeared tense, not that anyone could blame them. Daija and Umi were there though they chose to ignore the presence of those they disliked (much to Makoto's relief). Among Undines, Ikuya Kirishima and Hiyori Tono, and surprisingly Nao Serizawa, were present. Sea serpents Asahi Shiina and Momotaro Mikoshiba were there as an extra protection detail; they were still young so they weren't allowed out on the battlefield like their older siblings. And then from the Sirens, was Chigusa Hanamura, Gou's best and only friend.

They all stood ready to enact the ritual that would call upon the power of their worshipped deities and aid their kinsman in battle.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Makoto couldn't help but admire the beauty of the Chamber. It was a large circular area with a smooth ocean blue floor, stone pillars supporting the room, and beautiful mosaics of different sea gods such as Poseidon, Triton, Tsovinar, Suijin, Susanoo, etc. At the centre lay the pool, moderate in size, the water inside completely still. The water of the pool was pure and stretched downwards endlessly into a world of its own. Right above the pool was skylight that took in moonlight and directed it down into pool.

An unusual trait the Chamber possessed was that there was no water inside except for what was in the pool. So it was like being on land, except not.

"Alright everyone," Gou announced as the full moon started to come over the pool. The pool reacted and started to bubble. "It's starting, and it's our turn."

And thus the ritual began.

**With Rei**

Rei walked along the cave pathway, unsure of where he was heading. He wasn't usually one for these sorts of things, adventure or mystery, but he was a curious individual and his curiosity was leading him here.

The pathway was pretty straightforward, with only a few turns. It was dark so it was difficult to see. However, he turned his phones (which thankfully hadn't broken during the fall) flashlight on, giving him a clearer view on the path. As he walked it became less necessary as the tunnel became brighter.

' _Am I nearing the end of it?'_ Rei wondered. _'I must be if there's this much moonlight.'_

Much to Rei's surprise, when he reached the end of the tunnel it wasn't an exit, it was an entrance to another room. Well, open space may have been a more appropriate term considering Rei was at an outside area concealed from the rest of the world. The source of moonlight was the open ceiling that stretched far up.

' _I've heard Mako was an extinct volcano. This must be the crater,'_ Rei decided.

As fascinated as he was with the design, what was at the centre captured his attention the most. It was a pool. With deep blue water, no fish, several bricks around the edges, and one step just barely submerged under the water.

' _A pool? What on earth is a pool doing here? Wait, can I even call it that,'_ Rei thought incredulously. Despite his confusion, Rei couldn't deny there was something captivating about the pool. _'It's kind of... beautiful.'_

Just then, the full moon started to come over the crater and shine directly onto the pool, causing it to bubble.

"What the?" Rei blurted out confused.

There were sparkles of light rising from the pool, stunning Rei. This wasn't normal. Then the pool turned a bright colour and suddenly Rei could see images of people in a circle. They were half naked (much to his confusion) and dressed strangely. From his perspective it looked like they were praying.

**In the Chamber**

The pool glowed as those present began their ritual. Sirens sung an ancient song to increase the capability of the Undines who began chanting.

_Oh Great Deities of the Sea_

_We Your Servants Beckon Thee For Thy Help_

_To Fight Against Our Enemy Who Plagues Us_

_Please Lend Us Thy Strength_

_On This, The Brightest of Moons_

_So That We May Prevail_

_So Atlantis May Prevail_

As they chanted the water started rising and soon a huge sphere of water hovered above the ground.

It was working.

The Undines repeated their chant while focusing in their mind who they wished to aid and where.

The sphere grew bigger and brighter. Less than a minute and it would reach its full potential.

What no one realized was that it was affecting the surface.

**With Rei**

Rei just kept staring at the images in front of him.

"What is happening?" Rei exclaimed. "Perhaps I hit my head harder than I thought."

It was the only logical explanation. Despite this, Rei found himself closer to the pool trying to get a better look, unaware his hand was close to the water.

He touched it briefly, and without warning, the water grabbed him. Literally! It reached out and grabbed Rei by the wrist pulling him in.

Rei let out a scream and found, for the second time today that he was falling. He screamed loud as he fell through light, but no one heard him.

No one on the surface.

**At the Chamber**

The undines continued their chant while the sirens continued to sing. The sphere was just literally seconds away from being completed. Nothing could stop-

"Aaaggghhhhhhh," a male scream entered the room, breaking everyone's concentration.

Above the sphere, was a strangely dressed person, screaming and falling. He fell straight into the water from the sacred pool. Arriving at the centre he opened his eyes and stared at the people around him, who stared back at him wide eyed with shock and horror.

No one moved. They were too shocked to. They still had their thoughts.

' _WHAT?'_ Makoto mentally screamed.

' _WHO?'_ Haru mentally shouted.

'THE HELL?' Gou continued.

' _ARE YOU?'_ Nagisa finished.

Every Atlantean person in the Chamber was baffled by what was going on. However, the one most baffled was Rei as he tried to make sense of the situation.

' _What the hell?'_ he wondered. _'One minute I'm by the pool next thing I'm.'_

He didn't get a chance to finish that thought because at that moment a burning sensation entered his body. Rei tried to scream but found that no sound came out. He also realized that he couldn't breathe. The world around him got brighter as the pain increased steadily until it reached a point where he couldn't feel anything.

Makoto was horrified. The Sphere, it was holy water from the pool that was now channelled with the power of the Gods. There was no telling what could happen if a person was inside of it. That wasn't even the worst part. The incantations had been cast and they couldn't be stopped.

He watched as the person inside start screaming in agony. Makoto wanted to help him he really did but he couldn't. No one could.

The sphere burned brighter and suddenly there was a large surge of energy that sent everyone flying back against the wall.

Makoto could swear he heard voices, and he wasn't the only one. Haru, Nagisa and Gou could hear them as well.

It was their voices.

The Gods.

And they were angry.

**On the battlefield**

Atlantis was holding their own against Leviathan. For a brief few minutes they could feel their strength increasing and they started to push their enemy back. it seemed the ritual was working.

Then, without warning, they felt their strength return to normal and the city started glowing.

"What in Poseidons name?" Rin started.

Light erupted from the city that headed directly where the battle was taking place. Soldiers held onto each other as the raging currents tried to push them away. Rin pierced his triton into the ground while Sousuke did the same with his sword. While they were trying to keep firm, the enemy ships started to fail as did theirs. The soldiers heard angry cries, much to their horror.

' _Haru, what happened?'_ Rin wondered.

As soon as the waves stopped the soldiers were looking around at each other concerned. Leviathan's forces weren't in much better shape. With their main weapons down, and their forces exhausted they were at a disadvantage.

Their master seemed to sense this which is why. Using his own power, called them back away from the fighting.

The Atlanteans couldn't have cared less. They were more concerned about what was going on inside the city, or more specifically the chamber.

**With Rei the following day**

Rei slowly opened his eyes as the cool air blew against his body. His clothes were soaking wet and he was freezing. Steadily he sat up to see that he was on Iwatobi beach.

' _What on earth? How did I get here? I was on Mako last night,'_ Rei thought confused.

This didn't make any sense. He went to Mako last night for a party. He fell down into a cave where he found this strange, and beautiful, pool that started glowing for some unknown reason. And then he remembered feeling pain. That was all.

"Ugh," Rei moaned. "My head."

He didn't know why, but just thinking about it made his head hurt. Deciding to dwell on it later, Rei headed straight home, where his cousin Yukio was waiting for him.

Yukio could have been described as a smaller version of Rei. He possessed a similar hairstyle and wore glasses like Rei. However, Yukio's hair and eyes were turquoise, something he inherited from his mother. In addition, he wore black t-shirt and shorts. The t-shirt had a blue figure of an ice skater.

Due to these traits, people often assumed he was Rei's younger brother. The reason he and Yukio looked so much alike was because of their parents. Their fathers were brothers, while three years apart looked shockingly enough alike that people thought they were twins. Rei's uncle was the younger of the two.

"Rei-niisan," Yukio exclaimed. "Where have you been? Do you have any idea how worried I've been? When you didn't come back last night I almost called the police."

Rei smiled weakly at his cousin. He hadn't meant to worry him this much. Yukio on the other hand, was getting impatient.

"Well," he demanded.

"Sorry Yukio. I'm not exactly sure what happened myself," Rei admitted. "I guess I lost track of time."

Yukio didn't satisfied with the answer but he wasn't against it either. However, the preteen (yes he was twelve) figure skater (and yes he was also training for that) took a closer look at his cousin. His clothes were wet and covered in sand.

' _He couldn't have been in the sea, he hates it there,'_ Yukio thought. "Whatever it is you can tell me after you've had a bath. Cause you're clearly in need of one. Don't worry about your clothes. I'll handle them."

"Thanks Yukio, you're the best," Rei complimented.

Yukio shrugged and walked away. Rei headed towards the bathroom and started running the hot water. Once the tub was full, he climbed in and felt the hot water relax him.

"Aaahhhh," Rei exclaimed. "This feels good."

For a few seconds he forgot about the world around him as the water took away his troubles. He rested his head against the edge and closed his eyes unaware of the transformation he was currently undergoing.

Around ten seconds after he entered, Rei felt himself being pushed back the tub, much to his confusion. He also felt something at the end of the tub.

' _What is going, wait! Why can't I feel my legs?'_ Rei thought worried.

He placed his hand down to where his legs should have been, however, what he was felt was harder. It felt like scales. Concerned he moved the suds away to find something that shocked him to his core.

 _It was a tail!_ A big blue fish tail! His legs had disappeared and were replaced by this.

Then, befitting a normal person's reaction, Rei screamed as he pulled himself out. Unfortunately, Yukio had heard him.

"Rei, what's wrong?" he shouted as burst into the room.

He saw Rei moving out of the water, with his lower half replaced by something else. Rei then fell back and Yukio fully saw the tail.

And like his cousin, he screamed. The two now joining in with one another.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there. Well, what did you think of that? A lot happened in this chapter though I wanted to get through Rei's transformation and introduce the main characters.
> 
> Rei hates the ocean and swimming in general, though not for the usual reasons. Ayumu I added as a friend because I thought she would be a good one and I've got a plan involving her later.
> 
> I don't know how often I'll update this story but I at least wanted to get this chapter out.
> 
> Next chapter will go back to Atlantis just after Rei entered the moon pool. It will also show Rei adapting to his new situation. Please Review.


	3. Aftermath in Atlantis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath of Rei's unintentional interruption and the consequences that follow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own Free Iwatobi Swim Club

**Chamber of the Sacred Pool after Rei's interruption**

The Sphere's energy lasted for more than a minute as it forced everyone back against the walls. The angry screams of the Gods themselves could be heard the entire time.

When it did end, the sphere reverted and dropped back into the pool along with the body, which floated just at the top. For what was probably a few minutes, no one moved. They kept staring at the person who had interrupted the ritual with wide eyes. All the while asking the same questions.

_Who was he?_

_Where did he come from?_

_How did he get in here?_

Makoto was the first to react. Standing up, he walked over to where the boy was, everyone watching. Extending his hand, he controlled the water and dropped him out gently on his back. He made sure to put the water right back where it came from considering the nature of it.

He then carefully inspected the body. The boy was breathing, barely. Though Makoto considered that a good thing, all things considered. He was still surprised the boy had survived that. He examined the garments he was wearing. They were quite strange. There were some Atlanteans that liked to be covered but not this much. Also, their texture and design were unlike anything he'd seen before. There were also these strange things covering his feet.

Makoto travelled up towards his head. There was something covering his eyes, but he didn't know what they were. His face was pretty decent complimented by his blue hair. Upon examining his neck Makoto gasped.

' _He's not an Atlantean. But then, how did he?'_ Makoto thought stunned at his discovery.

"What's the matter Mako?" Nagisa piped up. "Is there something wrong with him?"

Makoto waved his head.

"This boy, he's not an Atlantean, he's a surface dweller, a human," Makoto said slowly.

It took a couple of seconds for everyone to register what they had just been told. And as soon as they did, the shouting began.

"ARE YOU SERIOUS?"

"YOU'VE GOT TO BE JOKING!"

"THERE'S NO WAY A SURFACE DWELLER COULD SET FOOT IN ATLANTIS!"

"STOP LYING!"

The shouts continued until Gou went forward to confirm it. Her eyes widened as she saw his neck.

"No, Makoto is telling the truth. This boy is a human," she informed them. "Just look, he doesn't have gills."

The shouts stopped and some moved closer. When they saw she was telling the truth they started murmuring.

"Wow, he really doesn't have gills," Nagisa exclaimed.

"What's with his clothes?" Ikuya muttered under his breath.

"Do surface dwellers really cover themselves that much or is it just this guy?" Momo asked.

"What are those things on his feet?" Asahi asked pointing at Rei's shoes.

Everyone was a little intrigued by the arrival of the human since they'd never seen one before. Sure, they learned about them in school, but they'd never been near them. Contact with the surface was forbidden unless granted permission by the King.

"Uh, as interesting as this is, what are we supposed to do now?" Haru asked earning him looks of confusion. "There's a human, someone born on the surface, right here in Atlantis. What are we going to do with him?"

There were a couple of exchanges between the different classes. Haru had a point. What were they supposed do with him? No training they had received prepared them for this moment. They weren't allowed to interact with the surface world. As part of everyone's education (Nymph's included) they were taught basic things about humans and what they were. They were taught that they were dangerous and damaged the sea in various ways. They were taught to stay away from them or else risk exposure to their kind. If the surface world learned of Atlantis' existence there's no telling what they would do.

"WELL OBVIOUSLY WE'RE GOING TO KILL HIM!" a voice no one wanted to listen to shouted. "THAT SURFACE DWELLER INTERRUPTED THE RITUAL AND DEFILED THE SACRED POOL WITH IT'S PRESENCE. IT SHOULD BE PUT TO DEATH AT ONCE!"

The voice belonged to none other than Daija Kengen, a head undine. Daija was slightly shorter than Makoto. He possessed a muscular build, short purple spiky hair (spiky to the left) and dark purple eyes. He wore typical undine robes, purple trousers that went to his ankles and a cape.

"While I would rather it not be done here, I feel getting rid of that human is the best course of action," Umi Hebiza agreed in a soft voice.

Umi was a woman of short yet elegant stature and a curvaceous figure. She had seaweed green eyes and hair which stretched down below her waist and two tails that hung in front of her shoulders. She wore garments similar to Gou. She was a beautiful woman as well.

"Hold on a second, we can't just kill him!" Makoto protested.

"SHUT UP YOU!" Daija barked. "This all your fault! I knew involving you in the ritual would lead to something like this. I even warned them not include but did they listen, no, and now look where we are."

Makoto tried keeping a calm expression, but it wasn't easy. He knew Daija had always hated him because of his heritage. Many Undines and Sirens did. Haru on the other hand grew tired of Daija insulting his best friend.

"You knew involving Makoto would lead to a human appearing here?" he deadpanned.

Daija's face twisted in annoyance. "Well, not exactly that, but I knew something would go wrong. And look it did."

"That's not Makoto's fault though," Haru defended. "We all took part in the Summoning Ritual, and we all did the exact same thing in the same way. If anyone's to blame, then it's all of us. Throwing out baseless accusations like that without even a shred of evidence is just a sorry excuse for trying to get someone into trouble."

Daija's eyes burned with hatred. Haru could be annoying from time to time, but there were moments when he could just be infuriating. The way he defended that, that thing, sickened him. Something like him shouldn't have been allowed into their ranks to begin with. It was a disgrace to the Undine legacy.

"No one is killing anyone," Gou declared. "As princess of Atlantis I forbid it. Besides, we still need to examine him." Her gaze focused on the human who appeared. "We need to know if he was affected by ritual. Atlanteans it would have strengthened but there's no telling what it would do to a human. We also need to establish what he knows and what he saw. Hopefully, very little, or at least enough to think this was a dream. At any rate my father will want to question what happened here. And he's the explanation we need."

No one argued against her. King Toraichi, as well as Rin would be seeking answers to what went wrong here.

"What does he need these things for?" Nagisa asked as he tried on the glasses. "Huh, you see weirdly with these things on."

"Nagisa take those off. They could kill you," Asahi shouted.

"If they're fine for him I don't think they'll do me much harm," Nagisa shrugged nonchalantly. He then turned to get a better look at the human. "You know he's kinda cute. I wonder if all surface people are like him."

Nagisa didn't really understand why, but there was something fascinating, and attractive about the person in front of him.

Everyone deadpanned at Nagisa's comments. Now wasn't the time to be falling in love.

"We'll never find out," Ikuya pointed out.

"And we're good for it," Hiyori added. "You know dangerous the surface world can be."

There were a couple of murmurs of agreement.

"At any rate, we'd better take him to my father," Gou announced.

"How are we going to do that though?" Makoto asked. "He can't breathe underwater. The second he steps out of here he'll start to drown."

Makoto had a point. Gou just grinned.

"Don't worry. I've got a plan!"

**Throne Room (an hour later)**

King Toraichi sat in his throne with his son right next to him. He did not look happy.

Among those present were everyone who'd been in the Chamber, and several soldiers from the previous battle, including Sousuke and Seijuro Mikoshiba. Others were off recovering or preparing funerals for those that had fallen in battle.

"Now that we are all gathered, I'll get straight to the point. Gou," Toraichi started.

"WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?!" Rin shouted at the top of the lungs. "ONE SECOND WE'RE ALL POWERED UP AND FIGHTING BACK! AND THE NEXT WE'RE BACK TO NORMAL AND THERE'S A STREAM OF LIGHT THAT SHUT EVERYTHING DOWN! HELL, EVEN THE GODS WERE PISSED! SO WHAT DID YOU GUYS DO TO MAKE THEM THAT WAY, HUH? TELL ME!"

Haru resisted the urge to clap his hands over his ears. He really liked using his eardrums and didn't want them to be damaged, least of all by Rin's voice.

Toraichi glared at his son in a way that said 'shut up'.

"As Rin just said, but in a quieter tone, what happened?" he asked. "It seemed like the ritual was working fine."

Gou looked uncertain and started twiddling her thumbs. "Well, you see, we did enact the ritual as planned however, there was some outside interference."

The king narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Outside interference? Was it Leviathan?"

"No, no, no, no," Gou denied frantically. "Actually, it was something, someone else. Someone we didn't anticipate."

Then without further ado, Gou deactivated the camouflage spell she had placed on the human and revealed him to her father. The boy was surrounded by a blue light which was actually air being taken from the water while shielding him from the water. In short, Gou was enabling him to breathe while preventing him from drowning.

The unconscious boy had Toraichi's undivided attention. The other individuals in the room stared at him due to the abnormality of his garments. Toraichi pulled the boy closer to him using his magic and inspected him carefully. He knew what these clothes were, he'd seen them before. He inspected his neck only to confirm his suspicions. Instead of being angry he was surprised.

"A human! Here! How did he interfere with the Summoning?" Toraichi exclaimed.

The soldiers who were present instantly had their eyes locked on the boy and started whispering different things about him. Rin was just the same, however, despite his surprise and anger, he was also somewhat intrigued. He'd never seen a human before, at least not this close.

"How?" Toraichi muttered.

"We're not sure," Gou admitted. "We chanted like we were supposed to and we're seconds away from completing when he suddenly appeared from the ceiling and fell into the water."

Rin shot his sister a baffled look.

"That's impossible," he argued. "Atlantis is a long down from the surface. Even they wanted to come here they couldn't, not without assistance from one of us."

"Hey, I'm just telling it like it happened," Gou retorted. "Ask anyone else who was in the room and they'll tell you the same thing."

Toraichi raised his hand for silence. He contemplated Gou's explanation. While normally it was impossible there was one way which it wasn't.

"It's possible that he was brought here because the Ritual was enacted," he suggested. "The Summoning is very powerful and is filled with the Gods powers, who exist everywhere in the sea. It's possible that this boy was swimming, as some humans do, when he got caught up in the magic."

It was very rare for Atlanteans to call upon the Gods for help, and when they did, the effects could vary.

"You said he fell into the water right before the Ritual was complete?" the King continued.

Gou nodded. "Just a few seconds before yes. At that point we couldn't stop so the spell went ahead with him in it. That's why the Gods were angry."

"And he survived?" Rin asked incredulously.

Gou nodded again, this time her expression was more uncomfortable.

"It wasn't pretty. He was screaming in agony," she admitted sorrowfully. "Honestly I'm surprised the whole thing didn't end up killing him."

Toraichi returned his attention to the human in front of him. Then he stood up and waved his trident over the boy, a blue light emanating from the weapon. Toraichi carefully inspected the body. The boy's body was normal, nothing out of the ordinary as though it hadn't been affected by magic. There was some internal damage since his organs were weaker than normal, though it wasn't anything that couldn't be fixed. Other than that, there was nothing really wrong with him.

Toraichi placed his hand on the boy's head and concentrated his power. Very quickly he skimmed through his memories to see what he knew. He saw flashes of him trying to get away from people, falling into a cave, then coming across a pool, that's where it ended. The boy could remember the burning sensation of pain he experienced.

' _Poor thing. You didn't deserve this,'_ Toraichi lamented. _'It seems he doesn't know anything. Even if he has flashes, he'll likely think it was a dream.'_

He then turned to address his subjects.

"There's nothing to be concerned about. He doesn't remember seeing anything, and even if he does overtime, he will more than likely believe it was a dream," there were several sighs of relief. "His body has been damaged though. Take him to our healers for treatment."

Gou moved forward for this, Nagisa, Haru, Makoto, and Asahi following her. They were still curious about the human, although Makoto was more concerned about his well-being. The image of the human screaming was still embedded in his mind.

"You're letting him live?" Daija asked incredulously.

"Yes," Toraichi responded calmly. "Is there a problem?"

"He interrupted the ritual, angered the Gods, and put our city at risk," Daija listed off. "Worst of all, he defiled the sacred pool by entering it. He should be put to death."

Toraichi could understand why Daija was acting this way, though he was wrong to ignore the factors surrounding it.

"I am not going to execute a human for something he had no control over," he stated calmly. "He did not choose to come here it was our magic that brought him here. Punishing him for something we did is both unfair and unreasonable."

Daija opened his mouth to speak but then immediately shut it afterwards. He didn't want to argue with the King, or get on his bad side for that matter, much to Toraichi's relief.

"Besides, from what I saw, that pain he experienced was punishment enough," he said.

He sent the boy over to where Gou was who quickly took him and the others out of the room.

"Is this really a good idea?" Rin asked. "We don't know what the water did to him. And it was supercharged by the Gods."

"From what I could tell there was nothing abnormal about his body," Toariachi explained. "It was mostly internal damage."

"How do you know he wasn't affected though. Even if the changes aren't immediate that doesn't mean they aren't there," Rin argued.

He loved his father, he did. But he wasn't sure if he was making the right decision in this case.

"Your assumptions aren't unreasonable, but I doubt it. The boy is not a creature of the sea, he's a creature of land with no connection to us. It wouldn't, and shouldn't have affected him," Toraichi explained, though he secretly held doubts.

Rin, deciding he didn't want to argue, just scowled and left to go check on the soldiers with Sousuke following closely behind him.

Soon after the entire room was vacant all except for him. Toraichi slumped into his throne. At times like this he hated being King of Atlantis but he had no choice. He held up his left arm and stared sadly at his silver bracelet, a symbol of the union between him and his late wife.

' _My beloved, I miss you so much,'_ he thought solemnly. _'And I wish you were here.'_

**Doctor's quarters**

The five Atlanteans watched over the human boy with concern and interest as the doctor's carefully mended his body. Despite the fact that they were treating a human, the process wasn't that difficult. They did have to proceed slowly and carefully when restoring his body to its previous condition otherwise they would have ended up worsening it.

"Will he be alright?" Makoto asked concerned.

Out of all the Atlanteans, he was the one most concerned about the boy's stability and well-being. He may have been human, but he was innocent, a victim of circumstance kind of like him in some ways.

"The doctor says he'll live," Gou sighed. "He's quite lucky, all things considered."

"He looks so peaceful," Nagisa commented.

It was true. The boy was sleeping like he didn't have a care in the world. It was as though the events from a few hours had never happened. Nagisa thought it was cute.

"Thankfully that's all it is," Haru deadpanned. "Better this than dead."

There was silence when he said that. Haru's bluntness could be both a blessing and a curse sometimes.

"Still, it's sort of amazing," Asahi stated earning looks from everyone. "I mean just look at him. He looks a lot like us, but you can tell he's not just by the gills and clothes. I wonder if all humans look like these one."

"My father says they all vary in appearance just like us," Gou replied.

"Really?" Asahi asked curiously.

Gou nodded. "He's been to the surface before so he knows."

The four boys, mostly Nagisa and Asahi, now suddenly had tons of questions. Gou guessed what they were thinking and answered before they could.

"One of the things royals are expected to as part of their training is visit the surface world so they can get an idea of what it's like," she explained. "During their reign, there are moments when they have to travel there to care of some business. My father has had one or two of those moments, though I don't know what they were for. He never spoke about them, or what the surface world was like even when me and Rin asked."

That immediately shut them down and they started groaning.

"Rin hasn't been to the surface," Haru pointed out. "He would have told us if he had, and I'm guessing you haven't either."

Gou waved her head. "No. That training routine only takes place when we reach eighteen. Usually the King or Queen will explain a few things before taking us up there."

Nagisa pouted disappointed. "That's a shame. I really wanted to learn more about it."

"Why?" Gou asked incredulously. "It's unlikely you'll ever go there."

Nagisa stared at the ground. "We hear about it, but we really don't know that much about it. We hear all these things about them at school, but they're all based on stuff that's been repeated for centuries. I'm just curious as to whether or not it's still like that."

"Not to mention it's a completely different world to down here!" Asahi piped up.

Gou rolled her eyes while Makoto sighed. Harus expression was neutral. Nagisa and Asahi were the type to get curious about anything they didn't know. Apparently, that included the surface. Privately though, Gou really couldn't blame them. She was a little interested in the world that lived above them. Atlantis knew about them, yet humanity didn't know of them, despite the fact that they were so close to one another.

"You're not wrong," a familiar voice rang out. "Things are very different up there."

They turned and saw the king swimming towards them, however, this time without his trident in hand. Almost suddenly, everyone with the exception of Gou greeted and bowed to him.

"Father," Gou greeted.

"Your majesty," her friends quickly followed suit.

"Please, there's no need for formalities," the king dismissed. He turned to a doctor not operating on the boy. "How is?"

"Treating him is no issue my King. He should be back to normal in an hour or so, however we are proceeding with caution so that we don't worsen his condition," the doctor explained.

That didn't surprise Toraichi at all.

"Let me know when he is fully recovered," he ordered. "Afterwards I will take him back to the surface myself."

The doctor nodded his head. The ones not experts in medical area stared in shock at their King. Even the usually stoic Haru had his jaw dropped slightly.

"Not that I am arguing father, but why would you this yourself? You could simply send several guards to do it," Gou pointed out.

"True," Toraichi acknowledged. "However, I am familiar with Rei's hometown, so I can take him there myself. Also, one person will less likely raise suspicion rather than a group going themselves."

While everyone understood that there was one minor detail of that sentence that caught their attention.

"Rei?" Gou murmured confused.

"Oh, that's his name, at least from what I could see," he revealed.

"Rei?" Nagisa whispered. "That's a nice name."

"It's actually a girls name from up there," Toraichi admitted.

That comment caused the majority to burst out laughing.

"Hahaha," Nagisa laughed. "He has a girls name. I wonder what ours would be like up there. Haruka definitely belongs to a girl."

Haru grimaced at his full name being used. He really hated it, hence why he often opted others to call him Haru instead.

"Well, most of your names would be suited to the opposite gender," Toriachi announced causing others to quiet. They stared at the King confused. "Nagisa, Makoto, Haruka, and Rin are all girl's names. On the other hand, Gou is boy's name up there."

This time it was Asahi laughing as he pointed at his friends and spluttered out barely recognisable comments. The others groaned in annoyance. Gou was especially irritated. Her parents better not have intentionally given her a boy's name, or else there would be serious consequences. The same could probably be said for Rin but he wasn't here so.

"Your majesty, you seem to know a lot about the surface world," Nagisa said softly. "Would it be alright if we asked you some questions about it?"

Toraichi raised an eyebrow. Aside form his children, no one had ever asked him about the surface before.

The others were partially horrified at what Nagisa had done.

"Nagisa, you can't just ask the King about that," Makoto warned.

"I don't mind," Toraichi shrugged. The entire group turned to stare at him wide eyed. "What do you wish to know."

Gou couldn't believe what she was hearing. When she and Rin asked about it before he always shrugged it off and told them not to concern themselves with such matters. Her father seemed to sense her discomfort, however.

"If you're wondering why I'm willing to answer him and not you and your brother Gou, it's because you two were children when you asked me," Toraichi informed her. "I didn't want to indulge your curiosity in the chance you might swim off there." Gou was about to retort when he cut her off. "Considering your and Rin's personalities back then, can you honestly say you wouldn't?"

Gou considered it for a moment before nodding. Back then, she and Rin had been both curious and adventurous, which was a dangerous combination for two royal children.

"Am I allowed to ask now though?" she asked incredulously.

"If you wish," Toraichi replied. "What would you like to know?"

Gou thought about it for a moment. In truth, she didn't know what she wanted to know. She hadn't asked about the surface in years.

"I'll let Nagisa go first while I think of a suitable question," Gou finally said.

Nagisa didn't need to hear anymore as he shot out several questions.

"What's with those clothes of his? Do all humans dress like that? Or is it just him? What are those things on his feet? Ooh, what about those things on his eyes?" Nagisa said without missing a beat.

Haru internally groaned. Sometimes Nagisa could get too excited about certain things and then he would talk so much about them he would start speaking too fast for anyone to understand.

"Hmm," the King rubbed his chin. "In that order, those clothes are typical of a boy his age, and each human dress in a style suited to their liking. Those things on his feet are called shoes. Humans wear them as a means to protect their feet when they go outside, aside from when they are swimming or in their homes. They also wear sandals when it's warm which provide less coverage. As for those things on his eyes, those are called glasses. Some humans can't see very well, so they wear glasses to help them better."

As the others digested this information, Haru only had one thought.

"Seriously, you heard all of that?" he deadpanned.

"Believe or not, Nagisa isn't the first fast tongued individual I've met," Toraichi answered. "So I've had practice."

Haru didn't know how or when this happened but he decided not to question it.

"Have you worn any of these clothes yourself?" Nagisa continued. "I mean if you visited the surface before you must have, right?"

Instead of answering him, Toraichi waved his hand. In an instant, water swirled around him and he was dressed in a completely different outfit. His attire consisted of a brown jacket, light blue t-shirt, navy jeans, and black shoes. He even wore his own glasses which were circular.

Gou stared at her father in complete awe. He looked like a completely different person than the one she knew. Because of that, she wondered what she would look like in surface clothes. Unbeknownst to her, the others were thinking the exact same thing. Once Toraichi changes back, Asahi asked a question of his own.

"What sort of places do they live in?" he asked. "Do they live in cities like ours?"

"Some live in cities, others live in towns like the one Rei is from. Most humans live in houses while others may live in apartments," Toraichi explained. "It depends on the country though." He was quick to notice the confused looks. "The surface world is divided up into different countries, nationalities, and continents, just as the sea is divided up. The country Rei is from, the one that Atlantis lies near to, is Japan. Though I have not seen them, I have heard, their cities have large structures and buildings that rival our own."

That last part was a lie. He had been to a city, Tokyo he believed it was called, but he didn't want them to know that.

"My King, when you are up there, how does it feel compared to down here?" Makoto asked.

It was the only question he could think of at the moment. For years, he had seen different things that happened on the surface affect the water, a bright warm light from the sun, multiple ripples in the water, and the captivating light from the moon.

"It is different," Toraichi admitted. "To feel air on your skin, the warm ray of the sun on your face, and to walk on soil foreign to your soles. Everything is different up there: plant life, animals, smells which can vary from beautiful to horrific, materials that are foreign to your touch. The sun is very beautiful, provided you don't stare at it, and when it rains you feel it crashing on your body as winds rage and you can hear thunder and lightning."

Everyone, even the doctors were entranced by what they were hearing. The surface may have been a place to stay away from, but from the way he described it, it sounded amazing.

"Do they eat Mackerel up there?" Haru asked in a deadpan voice.

Hearing this, everyone barring Toraichi did an anime fall. Of course, of all the questions Haru would ask that? Mackerel was Haru's favourite food. The second he saw it he would dive straight into it. However, it enabled others, like Rin and Makoto to coerce Haru into doing something they wanted.

Toraichi burst out laughing.

"Oh Poseidon! You're a funny one Haruka Nanase," he laughed. "Rin told me how much you like mackerel and I didn't really believe it until now. I can't believe you asked me that." Haru merely stared at him, and the King calmed down. "But to answer your question yes they do eat mackerel. However, it's a bit different to what you're used to."

Haru's ears perked up at that.

"What do you mean?" he asked eagerly.

Makoto sighed. Only mackerel could make Haru interested in the surface. Scratch that, mackerel could make Haru interested in anything.

"Well, humans tend to cook fish, which is like heating it up," Toraichi explained. "Though some do eat certain fish raw, it's mostly cooked. They also add different toppings to make it taste better. I've tried some of it before. It's quite delicious."

Haru looked on with amazement. While no one knew it, he was secretly drooling. He wanted to try some of this surface mackerel.

The doctors interrupted to announce Rei's recovery was a success and he was ready for transport, much to the others disappointment.

"Well, I'd better get him back up. His family must be worried about him," Toraichi said. "As for the rest of you, I'd recommend you celebrate with the others, while you can."

There was something ominous about that message, but no one seemed to care. Atlantis was likely celebrating their victory in the streets.

"Why did you go up to the surface before?" Gou asked suddenly. "What business did you have there?"

It was the only question she could think of, however, it was the only that mattered.

Toraichi stared at his daughter with an unreadable expression.

"At first just to learn about the surface," he revealed. "But shortly after it was just to get away."

"From what?" Gou asked confused.

"Everything," he admitted, much to her surprise. "Sometimes I just needed to get away from Atlantis and go somewhere where I wasn't the King, just some ordinary person instead."

He didn't say anymore after that, not that he needed to. Gou knew how stressful it was to be a ruler, so it was only natural he would go someplace to try and cool off.

Without another word, Toraichi took Rei in the magic protecting him and swam off.

Nagisa took one final look at the human. He didn't know why, but he had a feeling they would see each other again.

"Well, now that's over and done with, what do you say we party?!" Asahi suggested.

There was an uproar of cheers, at least from three of them. Makoto merely raised his arm in excitement while Haru shrugged.

**Atlantis later**

Different factions of Atlantis celebrated in different ways. Undines put on a colourful magic show where they displayed their magical abilities and artistic creativity. Sirens sung in perfect harmony while different factions, Nymph's included, danced along. Sea Serpents were taking part in random one on one matches with each other.

Makoto drifted through the crowds unnoticed as everyone basked in the celebratory glory. He wasn't as happy though. His mind wandered back to that human from before, Rei he was called, and he stopped walking. The memory of him writhing in agony was still fresh. Gou's father had said he was alright, but Makoto was doubtful. You don't go through something like that and not come out unscathed. What was worse was that they had done it, it was an accident but still.

Makoto was snapped back to reality as he heard shouts and realized he was near to the Sea Serpents fighting rings. Curiosity got the better of him as he went to see who was fighting. Just looking over the crowd he could vaguely make out the figures and saw that it was Sousuke facing off against Seijuro Mikoshiba, a powerful Sea Serpent who mainly relied on raw power to dominate his opponents. He was certainly living up to his reputation has he powerslammed Sousuke onto the ground. He then grabbed his legs and proceeded to put him in a Boston Crab. Sousuke cried out in pain as Seijuro increased pressure. Makoto winced at the pain Sousuke was going through. He hated violence and preferred to avoid it, although he admired the form and grace people displayed when they fought.

While he was under a submission, Sousuke and Makoto briefly made eye contact with each other, and in those seconds they had each other's complete undivided attention. Sousuke stared deep into Makoto's bright green eyes as Makoto did the same with his teal blue ones. Their exchange was broken by Seijuro who applied even more pressure than before.

' _What was that?'_ Makoto wondered.

' _What the hell was that?'_ Sousuke wondered confused.

Whatever it was it gave him the strength to fight back. Using all the strength in his arms, Sousuke rolled Seijuro off. They were both back on their feet and Seijuro tried to tackle Sousuke, only for Sousuke to jump and catch Seijuro by surprise. With his legs positioned properly, Sousuke applied a strong choke hold that Seijuro couldn't break out of. Minutes later the Sea Serpent was unconscious and Sousuke was declared the winner. Instead of continuing on, he chose to walk out and let someone else have a turn.

Makoto chose that moment to walk away as well, having seen enough. He continued walking through the streets as he came to a more isolated area. He didn't need to worry about his siblings since they were off playing with their friends.

"Makoto," a familiar voice called out.

The latter turned and saw it was him from before.

"Sousuke," Makoto answered.

The Undine and the Sea Serpent stood inches apart from each other. Their eyes locked deeply on one another.

While all of Atlantis partied, stared at each other with no care in the sea.

**In another part of Atlantis**

Haru and Rin stood inches apart from each other. They were alone in an isolated room Rin had made sure of that.

For a minute there was nothing but silence between them until the prince broke it.

"Haru," Rin murmured softly.

"Rin," Haru said quietly.

Then, without warning, the two of them threw away their capes and embraced in a passionate kiss. Haru felt as though his entire body was on fire, though apparently the feeling was mutual.

Rin pinned Haru against the wall as they continued to kiss. They briefly broke to stare into each other's eyes.

Years ago, Rin and Haru had realized their feelings towards each other and later entered into a relationship, though they usually kept quiet about it except to their friends. Their love life was their business and no one else's. And they were in love, the same way Rin's father was with his mother.

The pair kissed again, this time taking it a step further as they would do throughout the night.

**Iwatobi Town**

Toraichi arrived at Rei's hometown, holding the human in his arms as he carried him from the water. Thankfully everyone was asleep, so no one saw him.

' _This place hasn't changed much since I was last here,'_ he thought. _'Good.'_

He liked this town and the way it was. Part of him hoped it never changed.

Toraichi lay Rei down carefully on the sand. This was all he could do for him as he didn't want to enter with an unconscious boy. People would ask questions.

On a side note, he empathised with Rei and his plight. He had observed from the boy's memories that he was being bullied and had lost his family. He was terrified of water and hardly ever went near it, although that didn't explain why he was in the sea. Perhaps he had fallen in. Still, he knew what it was like to lose someone important to him along with the pain and devastation it brought. It was one of the reasons he occasionally disappeared to the surface. To mourn in peace.

"Rei," Toriachi said softly. "I know you can't hear me but, I am sorry. I'm sorry for what happened to you and what you had to go through. You didn't deserve it, and you don't deserve what you're going through right now." He didn't know why he was saying this. He hardly knew the boy. "Whatever you decide to do, stick with your loved ones. They will guide you. They will keep you safe."

Toraichi noticed Rei's finger twitching. Had he heard him? Impossible. He should have been unconscious until tomorrow. Whatever the case, it was time for him to leave.

"Good luck young one," Toraichi wished as he looked at Rei for one last time. "I hope things do work out for you in the end."

With that he turned and returned to the sea. Part of him felt he should have been more worried about Rei because of the sacred pool. However, the logical part of his brain knew it was impossible because Rei was a creature of land. The surface boy couldn't have been affected, right?

Much later he would find out he was wrong, very wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there. Well, what did you think of that? I thought it would be good if the chapter showed Atlantis after Rei's unintentional interruption and the consequences that follow.
> 
> Haru and Rin are already in a relationship as you can see. They have been for a while now.
> 
> Next chapter will return to Rei as he uncovers his powers. Atlantis won't be shown for a short while but that doesn't mean they won't be involved. Also, Rei is going to undergo similar episodes Cleo, Rikki, and Emma did in the show, and that includes what happens when he sees the full moon.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed. Please review.


	4. Power

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rei discovers more about his newfound abilities.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey. I'm sure you've gotten warnings about it before, and I'm sure you're sick of hearing about it, but I will provide one of my own.
> 
> With the Coronavirus spreading across the world, please follow your governments directions and stay inside. The disease is dangerous and has infected and killed many people. so, please stay inside and avoid contact with others. I know it won't be easy but please try so that you and your family and friends will be safe.
> 
> Okay onto the chapter.
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own Free: Iwatobi Swim Club

The screaming between Rei and his cousin continued for about a minute as they went back and forth.

"What the hell!" Yukio shouted.

"What the hell!" Rei screamed.

"That's a tail," Yukio yelled.

"It's a tail," Rei repeated.

"You have a tail," Yukio exclaimed.

"I have a tail," Rei wailed.

"Why do you have a tail?" Yukio asked incredulously.

"I don't know," Rei moaned as he lay on the wet floor.

He really didn't. The only thing he knew was that when he entered the water, a few seconds later.

' _Wait! The water! Could it be?'_ Rei thought. "Yukio, could you please hand me a towel? I want to try something."

Not really understanding what was going on but too overwhelmed to think about it, Yukio did what he was asked without question.

Rei rubbed the towel thoroughly over his body, making sure to dry all parts. When he was done, his body underwent another transformation. Rei's body briefly transformed into a sparkling liquid and then his body returned to what it was before.

"Cool," Yukio whispered.

"I'm not sure cool is the right word Yukio-kun," Rei disagreed. "Strange, weird, terrifying might be more appropriate words."

His cousin didn't answer back, not that he could. In Rei's shoes he probably would have reacted the same way.

"Okay, we'll talk about this after I get dressed," Rei declared.

"You mean after you've had a bath," Yukio corrected.

Rei stared at the boy dumbfounded.

"You can't be serious!" he exclaimed. "You've seen what happens when I get in the water."

"Then I'll help you," the boy retorted. "Because believe me when I say, you are not leaving this room until you are cleaned. So, don't even think about arguing."

Rei grimly accepted defeat knowing he wouldn't be able to talk Yukio out of this.

 _When did he become the adult?'_ the eldest wondered.

**Living room an hour later**

Rei sat across from his cousin on one of the sofas, still reeling from his most recent experience. It hadn't been easy, but Yukio managed to wash his tail (he didn't know what else to call it) while Rei handled his upper body. He didn't know how or why, but Rei felt this was only the first of many to come.

"Now that that's done and out of the way," Rei started.

"It would have gone faster if you hadn't struggled," Yukio interrupted.

"I didn't struggle," Rei angrily protested. "It just felt uncomfortable."

"Uh huh," the younger hummed sarcastically.

"Oh for Kami's sake Yukio! I'd like to see you try and bathe with one of, one of, these," Rei chastised, albeit a bit weakly on the last part.

Yukio didn't respond. He could tell his cousin was embarrassed, not that he could blame him.

"And just how did get, one of these?" Yukio enquired.

Rei thought about it, or rather he tried to think about it. He tried really hard to focus on what happened last night, but he just couldn't. The last thing he remembered was being in pain, like a lot of pain. It was as if the world around him was ending and all he could do was scream.

Rei didn't realize he had staring into space for several minutes until Yukio spoke up.

"Rei, Rei," he called.

"Sorry what?" Rei asked confused.

"You've been sitting there for seven minutes straight," Yukio explained. "What's wrong?"

Rei scratched his hair.

"I'm sorry Yukio but, I really don't know what happened to me last night," Rei admitted. "I know that something did happen but, other than that I."

"Okay, okay," Yukio tried to calm him down. "It's not your fault. What… what can you remember?"

Now that was a question Rei could answer.

"I went to the party on Mako Island with Ayumu-chan, and while I was there nothing bad happened for the most part. People didn't mind me being there and everyone was having fun. Then Mishima-san appeared behind me and dragged me away to talk," Yukio scowled at the name.

He knew fully well who Kitamura Mishima was as well as his underlings and what they put Rei through on a daily basis. More than once had Yukio wanted to report them but didn't because Rei convinced him not to.

"Anyway, he dragged me into the woods and wanted to take me on a boat ride, however I, I told him no. He didn't like it and tried more forcefully but I refused to go with him." Yukio didn't say it, but he was proud of his cousin for finally standing up for himself. For so long he allowed others to walk over him. It was good to see him taking a stand. "Then he started insulting me and then my family and… I snapped and punched him right across the face." Yukio's eyes widened. Rei was never violent, not as long as he had known him or even before that. "I couldn't stop myself. I was just so angry. Then I heard his buddies nearby and I just started running as fast as I could."

Yukio wasn't surprised. Kitamura on his own was bad enough, but when you added his sidekick squad it was a whole lot worse.

"While I was running, I came to a waterfall. I tried crossing it but then I fell down into this cave beneath. I was going to climb back up but with Mishima and the others out there I started following the pathway. That's when I came to this open space where the moon was shining in, and this pool. It was so beautiful." Yukio was confused about where this was leading. "Then for some reason, it started glowing. After that, the only thing I remember feeling is pain."

"Pain," Yukio whispered concerned.

Had someone hurt Rei?

"Pain," Rei repeated. "It felt like the entire world was on fire. And then I woke up on Iwatobi beach soaked and dirty before coming home."

As concerned as he was about Rei's well-being, the ending to his story confused him.

"How is that even possible?" he asked incredulously. "You couldn't have drifted here. Otherwise, you would have drowned."

"I don't know Yukio," Rei answered sullenly. "I really don't know. I can't remember. Whatever did happen down there, it turned me into this. Whatever this is."

"Um, I've only seen one movie about it but, I think the correct term would be mermaid," Yukio suggested.

Rei gave the boy a look that yelled _'Seriously'_.

"Don't be ridiculous Yukio-kun," Rei chastised. "Mermaids aren't real."

The preteen figure skater raised an eyebrow.

"Then how would you describe yourself?" he asked incredulously.

Rei didn't answer, not immediately.

"I don't know. I'll work it out later," he said. "Right now, I need to decide on what I'm going to do. I'll need to be more careful at school, and outside in general. What will I do if it suddenly starts raining while I'm out jogging, or someone accidently spills their drink on me? If I get the slightest bit wet, I'll turn into… that whether I want to or not. If people find out about what I am."

Rei shuddered at the thought of that happening. There was no normal, logical explanation to describe his condition. If anyone found out, he could end up as some research subject in a science lab, or worse.

"Does that mean we can't tell Dad then?" Yukio asked uncertainly.

"For the time being at least," Rei answered. "Just until I've figured out what's going on with me or figured out some way to cure myself."

It wasn't that he distrusted his uncle or anything, however, he wasn't sure how he would react to this. Hell, he wasn't sure how anyone would react to this. Luckily, his uncle was currently competing abroad, so they didn't have to worry about that for a long time. Being an Olympic swimmer meant he had to train a lot, there was also the matter of participating in different swimming contests to provide for them.

Rei's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by his phone buzzing. Checking the ID he saw it was a message from Ayumu.

**Where are you? I looked for you last night but you just vanished. Are you okay?**

Rei groaned. He'd forgotten about Ayumu. When Kitamura showed up things spiralled out of his control and he just completely forgot about her (albeit for good reason).

**I'm at home right now with Yukio. Sorry I disappeared last night, it's just that things became a little chaotic for me.**

It took a minute for her to respond.

**How did you get back? I didn't see you on any boats last night.**

Rei considered his answer. Ayumu wasn't stupid. There's no way she would believe an answer like his. At the same time, she knew he wasn't the type to lie, least of all to her.

**I'm not exactly sure myself. I woke this morning on Iwatobi beach soaking wet and covered in sand yet I can't remember how I got there.**

Another minute passed before Ayumu answered.

**Seriously!**

**Seriously. Ask Yukio about how I came in if you don't believe me.**

**I do believe you. It's just… would it be alright if I came over and talk?**

Rei considered it briefly.

**How about I meet you over by the river. We can talk then.**

**Sure. See you.**

"Yukio I'm going out to meet Ayumu," Rei told him. "I'll be back later."

"Are you sure you want to do that?" his cousin asked uncertainly. "With what just happened, is now really the time to be going out?"

Rei understood where he was coming from but knew he had to do this.

"If I don't go, then Ayumu-chan is gonna get suspicious. And if I don't keep up with my routine like school or jogging, then people are definitely going to get suspicious, and that's the last thing I need right now," he explained.

Yukio didn't have a way to counter that.

Seeing as he was right, he decided to let his older cousin meet his friend. They could talk about what to do later.

**Thirty minutes later**

Rei met up with Ayumu and they talked about what happened last night. She was angry at what Kitamura had done, but at the same time she was thrilled Rei had finally stood up for himself and gave that bastard a well-deserved punch. Well, Rei actually punching someone still surprised her since he was never violent.

"So, you really don't know how you ended up on Iwatobi beach?" she asked.

"No, anything after the cave is a complete mystery to me," he admitted.

"Don't worry. I'm sure it will come back to you over time," Ayumu assured him.

Rei wasn't so sure he wanted that, but he appreciated Ayumu's sentiment all the same.

"Maybe who knows," he murmured. He then decided to change the subject. "So, did anything interesting happen after I left?"

"Not really no," Ayumu shrugged. "The party went on without issue. People sung, danced, and talked like they didn't have a care in the world. Though with exams in two weeks' time I'd say that'll be changing."

Rei couldn't help but laugh at that. Exams were the one thing everyone at his school dreaded, not that he could blame them. He hated them as much as the next person but hey, they had to be done.

"That they will Ayumu-chan. However, who says your friend will doing them?" a familiar, cruel voice sneered. "By the time I'm through with him, he won't even be showing his face around school."

Rei felt his blood turn cold as someone came behind him and held him by the arms. That someone was none other than Shinji Kiwatari, who was grinning sadistically at the situation.

Similarly, someone appeared behind Ayumu holding her by the arms, who turned out to be Daigo Moyotasu. However, unlike his companion, he did not appear happy about the situation. If anything, he appeared to be giving Rei and Ayumu looks of pity.

In front of the was Kitamura and Kyo Hanamiya, both of which were smiling.

"What the hell do you want?!" Ayumu demanded though she had a pretty good idea.

Kitamura ignored her completely and moved towards Rei, who was frozen with terror.

"You've got a lot of nerve showing your face around here," he snarled.

"I live here," Rei said, though he immediately regretted it afterwards.

"DON'T YOU DARE INTERRUPT ME!" Kitamura shouted as he punched Rei straight in the jaw.

Rei winced, or he would have if he actually felt pain.

' _What the? That didn't hurt at all,'_ Rei thought bewildered.

Kitamura had held back much during that strike, so why didn't he feel anything from it. Kitamura was just as confused as his hand started to feel sore.

"What the hell?! Since when is your head so hard?" he demanded. Rei just started at him dazed. "Never mind. Now, about that stunt you pulled last night."

"Stunt?" Ayumu asked incredulously. "You where he punched you in the face?"

"Of course, what else?" Kitamura asked disinterestedly. Shinji and Kyo immediately started laughing upon being reminded of it, much to the bully's fury. "Shut up! It's not funny. My jaw was hurting a lot from that punch."

That only caused them to laugh harder. As a result, Kitamura's rage increased.

"Good, you deserved it!" Ayumu spat. "You do this sort of thing to him every day without any consequences. It's about time you got some punishment."

Kitamura turned away from Rei and moved to Ayumu who was glaring hatefully at him. Reaching up, he grabbed her by the chin. Rei felt his heart drop as he watched the exchange between Ayumu and Kitamura.

"Oh Kunikada-chan," Kitamura said softly. "You really should learn to keep your mouth shut. You never know what sort of trouble it could get yourself into."

Kitamura tightened his grip, causing Ayumu's face to scrunch up. Rei's fear quickly became anger as he watched Kitamura hurt his best friend. His hand twisted, and as it did the nozzle from the fire hydrant began to screw loose.

' _What on earth!? What's this I'm feeling,'_ Rei wondered as he glanced in the direction of the hydrant.

For reasons he couldn't explain, he could feel something coming from it, just waiting to be released. He turned his hand more, and slower as the nozzle slowly became undone.

"I don't deserve punishment for anything Ayumu. My father, as well as myself, contribute much to this little town. Without us it would be nothing," Kitamura gloated. "And since we do this, I can do whatever the fuck I want. So, I don't deserve punishment of any kind. If anything, you should be grateful for hav-."

He never got the chance to finish that sentence, because at that exact moment, the nozzle from the hydrant became undone and water burst out. Before anyone could react, Kitamura was blasted with a torrent of water and sent crashing into the river.

"Ugh," he choked as spit out the water.

For about a minute, no one did anything. Then Rei, against his better judgement, burst out laughing at Kitamura's state. Out of the four of them, this boy tormented him the most. It felt kind of good to see him humiliated for a change. Ayumu was quick to follow, as were Kitamura's friends as they laughed at his predicament.

"You were saying," Rei laughed.

Kitamura's face twisted from humiliated to complete rage. How dare he! How dare he!

"SHINJI!" he yelled. "SHUT HIM UP!"

Shinji didn't need to hear any more as he turned Rei around. Gripping his shoulders, he delivered a powerful headbutt. However, much like the first time, Rei didn't feel any pain. In fact, he hardly felt it. Shinji was a different story. His head suddenly felt like it had been rammed into a brick wall. He released his grip on Rei and tried to steady himself before wooziness took over and he collapsed on the ground.

Everyone stared dumbfounded at what just happened. No one, particularly Rei, could understand how he was still standing while Shinji was on the ground.

Ayumu was the first to react. Taking advantage of the distraction, she stamped on Daigo's right foot, causing him to yelp in pain. She then gained enough freedom to bring her leg fully back as aimed between his legs. Daigo cringed and released her from his grip. Not stopping there, Ayumu grabbed him by the hair and threw him into the river where he crashed into Kitamura. Daigo would have resisted, only he was too busy holding his crotch in agony.

"Run Rei!" she yelled.

Rei snapped out of trance and the two of them made a beeline for his house. Kyo didn't even bother pursuing them. He wasn't as physically strong as the others, so he knew he stood no chance.

Kitamura just sat in the water fuming about how Rei humiliated him two days in a row. He was going to get him for this. He was.

**Rei's house**

As soon as they got back, they gave a full explanation of the events to Yukio who couldn't stop laughing when they were finished.

Kitamura had given them, more specifically Rei, no end of trouble. It was good to see him his just desserts for a change. Then they came to the topic of Shinji.

"Rei is something going on with you?" she asked. "Today with Shinji, I've thought about it and I just don't see how it's possible. That boy has knocked out boys much bigger than him. So how did he end up on the ground after headbutting you? Your head isn't that hard?"

Yukio laughed again but quickly silenced himself.

Rei pondered over his answer. He knew for a fact there was no logical way to explain this to Ayumu, then again, why did he have to keep it a secret from her to begin with. If he couldn't trust his best friend, then he couldn't trust anybody.

"It's easier if I show you," Rei told her.

"Rei-nii," Yukio called out nervous.

"It's alright. I trust her," he assured him.

Ayumu frowned. Trust her? Why wouldn't he trust her? What was going on?

Rei brought her to the kitchen and poured some water from the top on his hand. Ten seconds later, he transformed.

Ayumu could only stare in shock at what she was witnessing. Her friend had a tail, a fish tail.

"Wow," was the only thing she could say.

Rei had to admit he was impressed. He and Yukio had screamed for several minutes but Ayumu managed to remain calm. She was shocked, but calm, nonetheless.

"And that's not the only thing," Rei informed them both.

As soon as he had legs again he led them to his room with a glass of water in hand. Focusing on the water he motioned his hand upward and the water followed. Ayumu and Yukio were both dumbstruck at what they were seeing. First a tail, now controlling water! What was next?

"That thing with the fire hydrant," Ayumu realized. "That was you."

"I didn't mean to," Rei admitted sheepishly. "When he started hurting you I, well, it was sort of an accident."

Yukio snorted.

"Best accident ever!" he applauded.

"Agreed," Ayumu said. "However, there's one thing I find confusing about this. The extra water, where's it coming from?"

True to her words, the water in the glass had not depleted from its original amount and continued producing extra amounts.

"I have no idea," Rei admitted dropping his hand slightly.

The second he did, the water started to fall towards them. Reacting quickly, Rei brought his hand up again to try and stop it. However, much to his surprise, the water turned to ice.

"How did you do that?" Yukio asked.

"Again I don't know," Rei said. "I just wanted to stop it and I brought my hand up. I can't quite explain it, however, this feels natural to me. Like if I want the water to move it moves, if I want it to freeze it freezes."

"Perhaps you could even boil it," Ayumu suggested, causing both boys to turn in her direction. "From the looks of things, it appears you can control the states of water without much of an issue. Though that's just a theory. You're also stronger than before."

Rei wasn't sure about that, though the idea did intrigue him. As much as this all freaked him out, part of him couldn't deny he was interested to see where this would lead.

"You're going to have to work hard to avoid getting caught," Ayumu told him. "Don't worry. I'll help you."

"So will I," Yukio added.

Rei touched that they would help him like this.

"Besides, you'll need all the help you can get Ariel," Yukio stated.

Rei was about to chastise his cousin for calling him that when Ayumu beat him to it.

"Yukio-kun, that is in accurate. Rei-kun can't possibly be Ariel," she explained. "Ariel's hair is long and red while Rei's is short and blue. Furthermore, Ariel is a mermaid, Rei would be a merman."

"Point taken," Yukio agreed.

Rei was going to argue when he decided against it. He was tired and he's had enough for the day. He could decide on what to do tomorrow. For now, he would rest.

Little did he realize a month from now, his life would be affected again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there. Well, what did you think of that? Rei has started to learn about his powers and Ayumu now knows as well. I was going to have her learn in the next chapter or two but I decided now was a good time.
> 
> The confrontation was originally supposed to be the two of them and Kitamura but I decided it should be the whole group because Shinji was a good way to showcase Rei's enhanced attributes.
> 
> Next chapter will be a small timeskip as Rei undergoes his first full moon. Hope you enjoyed. Please review.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there. Well, what did you think of that? this is an idea I thought of recently and I just couldn't get it out of my head. As the title suggests, it involves elements from the tv series H2O and Mako Mermaids and most of the magic seen will be from it (most of it). The show being one my inspiration for it, I was also inspired by Undine by Tenkku which is where I got the idea to use Undines as magic casters. Also, despite the amount of information given, and Rin being mentioned, Rei is the protagonist. Hope you like this! Please review!


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